First Offense

by Nancy Taylor Rosenberg

Barely surviving a shooting attack by the man she believes is her missing husband, probation officer Ann Carlisle follows the investigation of the drug dealer she supervises while struggling against a corrupt criminal justice system. 150,000 first printing. $150,000 ad/promo. Tour.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Legal Thriller, Thriller

Hardcover

First published June 1, 1994

About the author

With a BA in English and 5 years as a photographic model behind her, Nancy Taylor Rosenberg studied criminology. She served in the Dallas Police Department, New Mexico State Police, Ventura Police Department and as an Investigative Probation Officer in Court Services for the Country of Ventura where she handled major crimes. She lived in California.

Reviews

[Tracy Walters · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to be honest...I wasn't really excited to read this book...but I ended up really enjoying it! It was a fun read with a pretty exciting storyline. I did figure out who the bad guy was in the very first shooting........but that was okay.....it was fun to see it all play out anyway! I had a good time reading it and I enjoyed myself more than I thought I would.

[Hans Brienesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good read from Nancy Taylor Rosenberg. A reasonable plot that moves along quickly enough with little hints thrown here and there that aid the reader to determine the villain. The only beef I have with this (and a lot of other tales) is why oh why does the central hero/heroine have to a/ be the only one to have the facts worked out while all around have missed the crucial clues? b/ be able to have licence to access documents/people where others do not, and c/ be the one to risk all, life and limb to bring the perprator to justice. Otherwise, a fine read.

[Nolan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not sure what I can write about this book that will be particularly constructive. This author is talented enough that I would read her again, but not for a while, and not eagerly.

Ann Carlisle is a California probation officer whose husband left her several years before the book begins. She is raising the couple’s 12-year-old obnoxious son who is convinced Dad is coming home. Ann is dating a lawyer in the district attorney’s office; he’s the kind of guy who insists that Ann putout in the stairwell of the courthouse. She’s not a huge fan, but nor does she have the backbone necessary to say no. One of the people who saw her taking it in the stairway was a young dope dealer who had just been assigned to her by a judge.

Within minutes of her little stairwell escapade with the hotshot attorney, Ann Carlisle is shot while traversing a parking lot to her car.

Not many days after her return from the hospital, the mysterious phone calls start coming in. They appear to be from her husband—the one who deserted her years earlier.

I predicted way too early how this would turn out; it’s pretty transparent. Additionally, I just never came to care about Ann Carlisle. I just didn’t see her as all that sympathetic a character.

[Ron Praeger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. I wasn't able to read through in one sitting due to my schedule and finished it a few months after I started, though I pretty much read the 2nd half in a matter of days. The professional side of the story enlightened me a bit on court and probation procedures and though I was surprised the narrative when into as much detail as it did I found the details interesting.

I would not say that the story is predictable but due to the fact that I've seen so many detective dramas I pretty much guessed the ending early on in the book (or rather, the identity of the "real" villain). Maybe it's due to understanding human nature better than I thought, or perhaps it was the author's intent to plant such suspicion early on. Either way, even when things began to fall into place I still expected a surprise and in that I was not disappointed.

So here is my spoiler review: Not all things, or characters, are what they seem.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

An OK to good read that has been sitting on my TBR shelf for far too long. This crime thriller was written 25 years ago and has sadly dated due to the huge changes we now have in technology. It was still interesting, with twists and turns, but the characters didn't grip me as much as I'd want them to in order for me to care about their potential danger.

[Toesnorth's mom]

ridiculous and full of sex

[Roger Smitter · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novel is in many ways a typical lawyer novel. At the same time, it reminds us that 30+ years ago legal police and lawyer novels that had a large set of characters, a long story line, and a number of changes and re-directions.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far it's pretty good. The main character is very similar to one in several of her later books. Not sure how I feel about that yet.

Finished - better than it started - good story.

[Mary Chamberlain · Rating 1 out of 5]

The story was good, but the language did not add to or improve it. I will not read another book by this author or recommend her to anyone. :-(

[Brenda Wharton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ann is a probation officer, married to a police officer. Her husband suddenly disappears. 4 years later she is getting phone calls and recognizes his voice. She is shot at after a probation hearing and as she gets closer to Glen, a handsome district attorney... things escalate and she finds her life spinning out of control

[Kristina Kranig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book turned out to be pretty good. So many questions going through your mind? Who shot her? Who saved her? Who is harassing her? But the whole time in the back of your mind you’re wondering what really happened to her husband and will she ever find out? If you just keep reading all these and more are answered.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1994, there are some dated aspects contained in this book and some issues that don't necessarily reflect more progressive values of our current times. But, the story line was engaging, the characters interesting, and it kept me entertained. I almost gave this 3 stars because it really wasn't hard to figure out, however, it was still interesting.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

New Author for me and clearly a 10 STAR Rating... So fast PACED!!! It's one of those books when you start reading you don't want to put it down till your done!!! I will definitely purchase more books of this Author and I already have 2 books on the shelf :-)

[Darcee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Female probationary officer who was previously a cop, stalked by sociopath district attorney. This is a stand alone novel by this author. I think that I will need to read another by her before I really give an endorsement.

[Ian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The characters are two dimensional and childlike in attitude. It was easy to read and passed the time.

[Sue Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was gripped from beginning to end, even though I sort of had an idea who it was it didn't spoil the read.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Riveting attention getting plot, but too many of the characters were so unbelievable I was mostly annoyed.

[Bright Boy Books]

1 hard, 1 mass

[Liliana Costa]

Li em português, não em inglês.
ISBN 9789727481132

[Stacy]

Very intense! If you've never dealt with the court system, this was pretty accurate. Could have done without the sexual content detail. Overall, was a very good read.

[Dorothy Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

This came close to a DNF for me. The main character was whiny, with a serious case of victim mentality. She finally started acting like an adult with a brain in the last third.

[Betsy Fatzinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, but predictable. I read it all, though.

[Elaine Cripe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave a 2 as it was alright

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don’t know whether this leading lady is too brave or foolish, but definitely not afraid to act on her thoughts

[Elisabeth Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a new favorite author

[Mike]

Feb-1999

[Cecilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ann Carlisle is a gutsy, no-holds-barred probation officer who seems to attract bad situations everywhere she goes. From getting shot in the beginning of the novel to dealing with rough clients…one in particular is a drug dealer...Ann is always ready for anything. She does have some “human” qualities…such as not everything going as planned with her 12-year-old son David…and she is still mourning the loss of her husband, who disappeared several years back under mysterious circumstances. Rosenberg's character Ann Carlisle reminded me a lot of Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. Yes, Plum is a bounty-hunter and Carlisle is a probation officer but the manner of both ladies and the brashness with which each is written was similar to me. The writing is very fast paced and overall, it’s a pretty easy ready (I read it in one evening), even though there are a lot of details about her cases and clients. Plus, it was a FUN read…not entirely realistic but great escapism. I mean, I’m not sure that a P.O. would do all the sorts of things Ann does, but that really didn't bother me. I just got caught up in the story and went along for the ride.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In another classic early legal thriller from Nancy Taylor Rosenberg, First Offense, she told us a gripping tale that would send shivers down our spine. We were introduced to California probation officer, Ann Carlisle, a single mom of a teenage son, when her police officer husband vanished four years ago. She was always sexually awakened by a powerful DA, too. As she left for work one day, a bullet struck her shoulder, when Jimmy Sawyer, a drug dealer saved her life and wondered what he was doing at the scene of the crime. While at the same time, she investigated a man who brutally raped people, when at the same time, the evidence had disappeared from Jimmy's house, too.

[Legolas Devildog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some books never go out of style and for me Rosenberg is one of those Authors. I read one or two of her books a long time back so I decided to start reading them again now. First offense is a great read and if you like True Crime you will enjoy this one.

Well written with a good eye to detail you feel like you are in the thick of the story along with the heroine Ann. You can tell the parts where Rosenberg drew on personal experience and even if it wasn't personal you can tell she did a lot of research on the other parts. There were maybe a chapter or two that for me dragged a little bit which is why I give it 4 instead of 5.

[Percontation Points · Rating 3 out of 5]

Waaay too much going on. I had no idea what sort of genera that the story was supposed to be until halfway through it. There were so many different character lines, and, even thought they all interconnected in the end, it seemed sort of silly to introduce characters and give us paragraphs and paragraphs of information about them only for them to only be briefly mentioned one other time.
Not to mention the fact that the book was riddled with grammatical errors. Was the editor drunk or something? It was awful and I barely managed to finish.
Predictable "crime" drama with too much going on.